Barbara Knecht, 87 of Le Mars, Iowa, passed away on Friday, December 24, 2021 at Mercy Iowa City Hospital in Iowa City, Iowa.

Barbara Jean Knecht passed away in Iowa City, IA on Dec 24, 2021. Visitation with the family will be 1:00 p.m. - 3:00 p.m., Sunday, June 19, 2022 at Rexwinkel Funeral Home in Le Mars, IA. At a later date, Arnold and Barbara will be laid to rest next to their daughter Carol at Riverside Cemetery in Akron.

The daughter of Arthur and Stella (Brown) Miller, Barb (Miller) Knecht, was born in Stevens, S.D. (later changed to North Sioux City) on April 20, 1934. She attended school in Sioux City, IA through the 11th grade.

She met Arnold "Bud" Knecht in South Sioux City at a skating rink. They were married on May 29, 1951 and started farming in Union County. Barb was a stay-at-home mom who helped Bud on the farm. They enjoyed square dancing and golfing. In 1974, they bought a farm outside of Parker, South Dakota. In 1983, they retired to Akron, Iowa. Barb couldn't "just sit around", so she went to work at K-Products as well as cleaned houses for several people. Barb and Bud were married for 68 years. Bud passed away Dec. 8, 2019.

Barb and Bud had three children Roger, David, and Carol.

Barb will be lovingly remembered by her sons, Roger and David.

Roger (Cindy Froiland) of Parker, SD and their children and grandchildren: Stephany (Howard) Winston, Kenya; Amanda (Sayeed) Zaman, Kayden and Kaiya; Ashlie Knecht (Jason Andersen) Meah, Trinity; Zachary (Nanette) Knecht, Evanna, Sarina, Olivia, and Wyatt; and Stephanie (Joseph) VenOsdel, Ethan and Callie.

David (Nancy) of Iowa City, IA and their daughters and grandchildren: Silvia (Nicolas) Mutis, Sofia and Olivia; Daria Botnikova, Alice; Luiza (Fabio) Granado, Gabriel; NavDeep Kaur; Mariana (Victor) Schveitzer; and Eli Krull.

Aunt Barb will also be remembered lovingly by many nephews and nieces.

Barbara Jean Knecht was preceded in death by her daughter, Carol, who passed away in infancy, her husband, Arnold "Bud" Knecht, her parents Arthur and Stella (Brown) Miller, four brothers John, Leo, Clarence, and Ronald and five sisters Evelyn, Margy, Betty Lou, Lillian, and Delores.

In lieu of flowers or plants, the family requests that donations be sent to Barb's favorite animal rescue facility - Noah's Hope in Sioux City, IA - noahshopeanimalrescue.com